Home Improvements - Outdoor Decoration with Northern Virgina ...

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Source: http://home-improvements.s-article.com/outdoor-decoration-with-northern-virgina-concrete-patios.html

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Pope's foot-washing final blow for traditionalists

VATICAN CITY (AP) ? Pope Francis has won over many hearts and minds with his simple style and focus on serving the world's poorest, but he has devastated traditionalist Catholics who adored his predecessor, Benedict XVI, for restoring much of the traditional pomp to the papacy.

Francis' decision to disregard church law and wash the feet of two girls ? a Serbian Muslim and an Italian Catholic ? during a Holy Thursday ritual has become something of the final straw, evidence that Francis has little or no interest in one of the key priorities of Benedict's papacy: reviving the pre-Vatican II traditions of the Catholic Church.

One of the most-read traditionalist blogs, "Rorate Caeli," reacted to the foot-washing ceremony by declaring the death of Benedict's eight-year project to correct what he considered the botched interpretations of the Second Vatican Council's modernizing reforms.

"The official end of the reform of the reform ? by example," ''Rorate Caeli" lamented in its report on Francis' Holy Thursday ritual.

A like-minded commentator in Francis' native Argentina, Marcelo Gonzalez at International Catholic Panorama, reacted to Francis' election with this phrase: "The Horror." Gonzalez's beef? While serving as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Francis' efforts to revive the old Latin Mass so dear to Benedict and traditionalists were "non-existent."

The night he was chosen pope, March 13, Francis emerged from the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica without the ermine-rimmed red velvet cape, or mozzetta, used by popes past for official duties, wearing instead the simple white cassock of the papacy.

He also received the cardinals' pledges of obedience after his election not from a chair on a pedestal as popes normally do but rather standing, on their same level. In the days since, he has called for "intensified" dialogue with Islam ? a gesture that rankles some traditionalists because they view interfaith dialogue as a sign of religious relativism.

This year's Good Friday procession at Rome's Colosseum, which re-enacts Jesus Christ's crucifixion, was dedicated to the plight of Mideast Christians, with prayers calling for an end to "violent fundamentalism."

Francis, however, chose to stress Christians' positive relations with Muslims in brief remarks the end of the ceremony. He recalled Benedict's 2012 visit to Lebanon when "we saw the beauty and the strong bond of communion joining Christians together in that land and the friendship of our Muslim brothers and sisters and so many others."

Francis also raised traditional eyebrows when he refused the golden pectoral cross offered to him right after his election by Monsignor Guido Marini, the Vatican's liturgy guru who under Benedict became the symbol of Benedict's effort to restore the Gregorian chant and heavy silk brocaded vestments of the pre-Vatican II liturgy to papal Masses.

Marini has gamely stayed by Francis' side as the new pope puts his own stamp on Vatican Masses with no-nonsense vestments and easy off-the-cuff homilies. But there is widespread expectation that Francis will soon name a new master of liturgical ceremonies more in line with his priorities of bringing the church and its message of love and service to ordinary people without the "high church" trappings of his predecessor.

There were certainly none of those trappings on display Thursday at the Casal del Marmo juvenile detention facility in Rome, where the 76-year-old Francis got down on his knees and to wash the feet of 12 inmates, two of them women. The rite re-enacts Jesus' washing of the feet of his 12 apostles during the Last Supper before his crucifixion, a sign of his love and service to them.

The church's liturgical law holds that only men can participate in the rite, given that Jesus' apostles were all male. Priests and bishops have routinely petitioned for exemptions to include women, but the law is clear.

Francis, however, is the church's chief lawmaker, so in theory he can do whatever he wants.

"The pope does not need anybody's permission to make exceptions to how ecclesiastical law relates to him," noted conservative columnist Jimmy Akin in the National Catholic Register. But Akin echoed concerns raised by canon lawyer Edward Peters, an adviser to the Vatican's high court, that Francis was setting a "questionable example" by simply ignoring the church's own rules.

"People naturally imitate their leader. That's the whole point behind Jesus washing the disciples' feet. He was explicitly and intentionally setting an example for them," he said. "Pope Francis knows that he is setting an example."

The inclusion of women in the rite is problematic for some because it could be seen as an opening of sorts to women's ordination. The Catholic Church restricts the priesthood to men, arguing that Jesus and his 12 apostles were male.

Francis is clearly opposed to women's ordination. But by washing the feet of women, he jolted traditionalists who for years have been unbending in insisting that the ritual is for men only and proudly holding up as evidence documentation from the Vatican's liturgy office saying so.

"If someone is washing the feet of any females ... he is in violation of the Holy Thursday rubrics," Peters wrote in a 2006 article that he reposted earlier this month on his blog.

In the face of the pope doing that very thing, Peters ? like many conservative and traditionalist commentators ? have found themselves trying to put the best face on a situation they don't like lest they be openly voicing dissent with the pope.

By Thursday evening, Peters was saying that Francis had merely "disregarded" the law ? not violated it.

The Rev. John Zuhlsdorf, a traditionalist blogger who has never shied from picking fights with priests, bishops or cardinals when it concerns liturgical abuses, had to measure his comments when the purported abuser was the pope himself.

"Before liberals and traditionalists both have a spittle-flecked nutty, each for their own reasons, try to figure out what he is trying to do," Zuhlsdorf wrote.

But, in characteristic form, he added: "What liberals forget in their present crowing is that even as Francis makes himself ? and the church ? more popular by projecting (a) compassionate image, he will simultaneously make it harder for them to criticize him when he reaffirms the doctrinal points they want him to overturn."

One of the key barometers of how traditionalists view Francis concerns his take on the pre-Vatican II Latin Mass. The Second Vatican Council, the 1962-65 meetings that brought the church into the modern world, allowed the celebration of the Mass in the vernacular rather than Latin. In the decades that followed, the so-called Tridentine Rite fell out of use almost entirely.

Traditionalist Catholics who were attached to the old rite blame many of the ills afflicting the Catholic Church today ? a drop in priestly vocations, empty pews in Europe and beyond ? on the liturgical abuses that they say have proliferated with the celebration of the new form of Mass.

In a bid to reach out to them, Benedict in 2007 relaxed restrictions on celebrating the old Latin Mass. The move was aimed also at reconciling with a group of schismatic traditionalists, the Society of St. Pius X, who split from Rome precisely over the Vatican II reforms, in particular its call for Mass in the vernacular and outreach to other religions, especially Judaism and Islam.

Benedict took extraordinary measures to bring the society back under Rome's wing during his pontificate, but negotiations stalled.

The society has understandably reacted coolly to Francis' election, reminding the pope that his namesake, St. Francis of Assisi, was told by Christ to go and "rebuild my church." For the society, that means rebuilding it in a pre-Vatican II vision.

The head of the society for South America, the Rev. Christian Bouchacourt, was less than generous in his assessment of Francis.

"He cultivates a militant humility, but can prove humiliating for the church," Bouchacourt said in a recent article, criticizing the "dilapidated" state of the clergy in Buenos Aires and the "disaster" of its seminary. "With him, we risk to see once again the masses of Paul VI's pontificate, a far cry from Benedict XVI's efforts to restore to their honor the worthy liturgical ceremonies."

___

Follow Nicole Winfield at www.twitter.com/nwinfield

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/popes-foot-washing-final-blow-traditionalists-204320747.html

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Jake Owen: Why We Switched the Order of Olive Pearl

"We were going to name her Pearl Olive Owen," he explains. "But then her initials would have been 'POO' so we went ahead and switched that around."

Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/iQloRhM56JU/

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New EPA gas rules to cost one to nine cents a gallon

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Reducing sulfur in gasoline and tightening emissions standards on cars beginning in 2017, as the Obama administration is proposing, would come with costs as well as rewards. The cost at the pump for cleaner air across the country could be less than a penny or as high as 9 cents a gallon, depending on who is providing the estimate.

An oil industry study says the proposed rule being unveiled Friday by the administration could increase gasoline prices by 6 cents to 9 cents a gallon. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates an increase of less than a penny and an additional $130 to the cost of a vehicle in 2025.

The EPA is quick to add that the change aimed at cleaning up gasoline and automobile emissions would yield billions of dollars in health benefits by 2030 by slashing smog- and soot-forming pollution. Still, the oil industry, Republicans and some Democrats have pressed the EPA to delay the rule, citing higher costs.

Environmentalists hailed the proposal as potentially the most significant in President Barack Obama's second term.

The so-called Tier 3 standards would reduce sulfur in gasoline by more than 60 percent and reduce nitrogen oxides by 80 percent, by expanding across the country a standard already in place in California. For states, the regulation would make it easier to comply with health-based standards for the main ingredient in smog and soot. For automakers, the regulation allows them to sell the same autos in all 50 states.

The Obama administration already has moved to clean up motor vehicles by adopting rules that will double fuel efficiency and putting in place the first standards to reduce the pollution from cars and trucks blamed for global warming.

"We know of no other air pollution control strategy that can achieve such substantial, cost-effective and immediate emission reductions," said Bill Becker, executive director of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies. Becker said the rule would reduce pollution equal to taking 33 million cars off the road.

But the head of American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, Charles Drevna, said in an interview Thursday that the refiners' group was still unclear on the motives behind the agency's regulation, since refining companies already have spent $10 billion to reduce sulfur by 90 percent. The additional cuts, while smaller, will cost just as much, Drevna said, and the energy needed for the additional refining actually could increase carbon pollution by 1 percent to 2 percent.

"I haven't seen an EPA rule on fuels that has come out since 1995 that hasn't said it would cost only a penny or two more," Drevna said.

A study commissioned by the American Petroleum Institute estimated that lowering the sulfur in gasoline would add 6 cents to 9 cents a gallon to refiners' manufacturing costs, an increase that likely would be passed on to consumers at the pump. The EPA estimate of less than 1 cent is also an additional manufacturing cost and likely to be passed on.

A senior administration official said Thursday that only 16 of 111 refineries would need to invest in major equipment to meet the new standards, which could be final by the end of this year. Of the remaining refineries, 29 already are meeting the standards because they are selling cleaner fuel in California or other countries, and 66 would have to make modifications.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the rule was still undergoing White House budget office review.

___

Follow Dina Cappiello on Twitter: https://twitter.com/dinacappiello

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/epa-taking-aim-auto-emissions-sulfur-gas-071021486--finance.html

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Risk of autism is not increased by 'too many vaccines too soon,' study shows

Mar. 29, 2013 ? Although scientific evidence suggests that vaccines do not cause autism, approximately one-third of parents continue to express concern that they do; nearly 1 in 10 parents refuse or delay vaccinations because they believe it is safer than following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) schedule. A primary concern is the number of vaccines administered, both on a single day and cumulatively over the first 2 years of life. In a new study scheduled for publication in The Journal of Pediatrics, researchers concluded that there is no association between receiving "too many vaccines too soon" and autism.

Dr. Frank DeStefano and colleagues from the CDC and Abt Associates, Inc. analyzed data from 256 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 752 children without ASD (born from 1994-1999) from 3 managed care organizations. They looked at each child's cumulative exposure to antigens, the substances in vaccines that cause the body's immune system to produce antibodies to fight disease, and the maximum number of antigens each child received in a single day of vaccination.

The researchers determined the total antigen numbers by adding the number of different antigens in all vaccines each child received in one day, as well as all vaccines each child received up to 2 years of age. The authors found that the total antigens from vaccines received by age 2 years, or the maximum number received on a single day, was the same between children with and without ASD. Furthermore, when comparing antigen numbers, no relationship was found when they evaluated the sub-categories of autistic disorder and ASD with regression.

Although the current routine childhood vaccine schedule contains more vaccines than the schedule in the late 1990s, the maximum number of antigens that a child could be exposed to by 2 years of age in 2013 is 315, compared with several thousand in the late 1990s. Because different types of vaccines contain varying amounts of antigens, this research acknowledged that merely counting the number of vaccines received does not adequately account for how different vaccines and vaccine combinations stimulate the immune system. For example, the older whole cell pertussis vaccine causes the production of about 3000 different antibodies, whereas the newer acellular pertussis vaccine causes the production of 6 or fewer different antibodies.

An infant's immune system is capable of responding to a large amount of immunologic stimuli and, from time of birth, infants are exposed to hundreds of viruses and countless antigens outside of vaccination. According to the authors, "The possibility that immunological stimulation from vaccines during the first 1 or 2 years of life could be related to the development of ASD is not well-supported by what is known about the neurobiology of ASDs." In 2004, a comprehensive review by the Institute of Medicine concluded that there is not a causal relationship between certain vaccine types and autism, and this study supports that conclusion.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Elsevier, via AlphaGalileo.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. Frank DeStefano, Cristofer S. Price, and Eric S. Weintraub. Increasing exposure to antibody-stimulating proteins and polysaccharides in vaccines is not associated with risk of autism. The Journal of Pediatrics, 2013 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2013.02.001

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/WLfmupyDKeg/130329090310.htm

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Alternative history and alternative elections (Unqualified Offerings)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/295506114?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Where can doctors publish literary writing?

There are many ways to write about health, medicine, and health care. And there are many people ? patients, caregivers, policymakers, pundits, thought leaders, and?health professionals?? in a position to do so.

Fortunately, the world also offers a similar and growing diversity of places in which to publish this sort of work.

My focus today is more, well, literary.

I know the word ?literary? often puts people off, particularly those in medicine. To some it sounds pretentious. To others, it seems distant from real world problems and irrelevant to their lives and concerns. Some aren?t quite sure what it means.

Here are the first two official definitions according to?Merriam-Webster:

• Of, relating to, or having the characteristics of humane learning
• Of or relating to authors or scholars

So when I say literary, I mean something related to both writing and humanity. Medicine too is focused on humanity, and often we write about that. So?literary + medical?is not an odd coupling but a perfect match. And writing about our experiences in medicine as patients, caregivers, or providers is a way of authoring our humanity.

Below is a partial list, in alphabetical order, of medical literary or medical humanities journals that publish essays, personal narratives, poetry, fiction, and art, and a link to a terrific resource of literary journals.

Some of the writing for these journals, whether print or online, overlaps with the sort of work published in narrative sections of medical journals discussed previously. But it?s also different. The essays in medical journals often require a more scholarly approach that includes data, insider language, and references. The writing for medical-literary journals can be equally rigorous, though it?s different in style. The emphasis here is more on story and language, metaphor and images, even for essays and certainly for stories and poems. What this means is that it?s often not enough to tell a good story well; in this sort of journal, you might also need to tell it with beautiful or interesting or original language.

But it varies a lot, so be sure to read the instructions for authors.

Abaton. Annual journal of poetry, essays, art and photography that explores aspects of health care that often elude academic disciplines. It is these often unspoken sentiments of the provider and patient that form a bridge to an evidence-based profession. By allowing these stories to be heard, we give voice to the most fundamental aspect of medicine ? humanism.

Ars Medica. A biannual literary journal that explores the interface between the arts and healing, and examines what makes medicine an art. ARS MEDICA allows a place for dialogue, meaning-making, and the representation of experiences of the body, health, wellness, and encounters with the medical system. Content includes narratives from patients and health care workers, medical history, fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and visual art.

Atrium. A journal of scholarly work and art about the medical humanities published by the Northwestern University Medical Humanities and Bioethics program.

Bellevue Literary Review. A unique literary magazine that examines human existence through the prism of health and healing, illness and disease. Each issue is filled with high quality, easily accessible poetry, short stories, and essays that appeal to a wide audience of readers. This is the journal on this list with the highest literary stature ? stories, essays, and poems in BLR win national prizes in literature.

Blood and Thunder. An arts journal published by the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. All interested authors and artists are invited to submit original, health care-related, unpublished literary or artistic works of no more than 3,500 words.

Daedalus. Draws on the enormous intellectual capacity of the American Academy, whose Fellows are among the nation?s most prominent thinkers in the arts, sciences, and humanities. Each issue addresses a theme with original, authoritative essays on a current topic like happiness, human nature, and imperialism.

Dermanities. Emphasis on patient care, physician experiences, and the interplay of medicine with the social & psychological sciences. Accepts stories, poetry, essays, and art.

The Examined Life. From the University of Iowa, which hosts an annual conference in April with the same name and focus. Accepts submissions of poetry, fiction and nonfiction.

The Healing Muse. The annual journal of literary and visual art published by SUNY Upstate Medical University?s Center for Bioethics & Humanities. We welcome fiction, poetry, narratives, essays, memoirs and visual art, particularly but not exclusively focusing on themes of medicine, illness, disability and healing.

Hektoen International. Features articles on the medical humanities from a wide spectrum of global and cultural perspectives, essays, personal narratives, short fiction, poetry, and art.?Looking for articles on medical history, medicine and literature, art history, anthropology, and ethics.

Hospital Drive. The on-line literary and humanities journal of the University of Virginia School of Medicine. The journal publishes original literature and art on themes of health, illness, and healing. Poems, short fiction, essays, visual arts, and audio and video art will be considered. Issues will be published 3 to 4 times a year and may include invited work.

The Intima. An electronic journal to stimulate thought, reflection, and conversation about the intersecting worlds of medicine, humanities and art. Accepts scholarly essays or articles geared towards educating a general audience about Narrative Medicine, non-fiction, personal narratives or perspective pieces, fiction, short fiction, field notes, reflections on working in the field, poetry, studio art, in any medium such as paintings, photographs, or prints, audio or visual multimedia. Submissions welcome?from patients, family, and clinicians, about their experiences in health care.

The Pharos (the AOA journal). Alpha Omega Alpha?s quarterly journal publishes scholarly essays covering a wide array of nontechnical medical subjects, including medical history, ethics, and medical-related literature, art, ethics, economics, health policy, and profiles of prominent persons. It also publishes scholarly nonfiction on a medical subject, poetry and poetry/photography combinations, and personal essays.

Pulse. One narrative, essay, or poem telling the personal story of healthcare delivered to your inbox each Friday. Mission: publishing personal accounts of illness or healing; fostering the humanistic practice of medicine; encouraging health care advocacy.

The Yale Journal for Humanities in Medicine. The Yale Program for Humanities in Medicine at Yale sponsors this electronic journal in the hope to encourage dialogue among physicians, nurses, nurse-practitioners and physician-assistants, students, and all other health-care workers. We are eager for stories ? narratives they now are called ? from the patients we all become. In short, we foster humanism in medicine, however defined. We welcome poetry, essays, and book reviews with some flexibility in those categories.

Literary journals

By this I mean the journals where professional and ?real? writers publish their fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. These are not for beginners and often have more literary work, meaning the bar is higher. Because many of these journals are just published two, three, or four times a year, getting your story or essay or poem into one can make getting your scientific article into JAMA or NEJM look relatively easy.

Louise Aronson is a geriatrician and the author of A History of the Present Illness. She blogs at her self-titled site, Louse Aronson, and can be found on Twitter @LouiseAronson.

Image credit:?Shutterstock.com

Source: http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2013/03/doctors-publish-literary-writing.html

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Report: US Patent And Trademark Office Denies Apple's iPad Mini Trademark Application, Deemed ?Merely Descriptive?

Right after it launched the iPad mini, Apple filed a trademark application for the name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). As Patently Apple noticed earlier today, however, the USPTO will likely refuse Apple’s trademark filing because, the reviewer argues, “the applied-for mark merely describes a feature or characteristic of applicant?s goods.” The letter?was mailed to Apple on January 24, but only made public in the last few days. Apple can still respond to this notice and correct its application, though it’s hard to see how Apple could argue against the USPTO’s argument that ‘mini’ is ‘merely descriptive.’ “The applied-for mark merely describes a feature or characteristic of applicant?s goods.” The word ‘mini,’ the reviewer argues, just describes that the iPad mini is indeed “a small sized handheld tablet computer” and just describes the mini’s features. It is not, the reviewing attorney says, “a unitary mark with a unique, incongruous, or otherwise nondescriptive meaning in relation to the goods and/or services.” The USPTO would only grant apple the trademark to the full iPad mini name if the company coulhow that the word ‘mini’ has now acquired a “distinctiveness.” In addition, Patently Apple also notes, the reviewer also denied the application for now because Apple should have provided the USPTO with a specimen other than its own product website, even though Apple always uses these for its trademark applications and this was never a reason for a denial before. The reviewer also believes that there is a “likelihood of confusion” between Apple’s existing iPad trademarks and this new iPad? mini application, which, to be honest, doesn’t make a lot of sense. Here is the letter the USPTO sent to Apple in January: USPTO Refuses Apple’s iPad mini Trademark Application

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/xL16BBltNvs/

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S&P 500 closes at a record high, beating '07 mark

NEW YORK (AP) ? For the second time in less than a month, the stock market marched past another milepost on its long, turbulent journey back from the Great Recession, toppling another record left over from the days before government bailouts and failing investment banks.

The Standard & Poor's 500 closed at a new high Thursday, three weeks after another popular market gauge, the Dow Jones industrial average, obliterated its own closing record. The S&P capped its best quarter in a year, rising 10 percent, and the Dow had its best first quarter in 15 years, climbing 11 percent.

The numbers offer more evidence that investors believe the economy is on the mend, said Sam Stovall, chief equity strategist at S&P Capital IQ.

"The low-flying recovery is gaining altitude," Stovall said, citing a truism among investors that rising stock prices come first, then the economy catches up.

Thursday's performance was driven by encouraging economic data. Companies are making record profits quarter after quarter. They're hiring in greater numbers, and the housing market is finally recovering. The economy has expanded for 14 quarters in a row.

The Fed has helped, too. By keeping interest rates near record lows, the central bank has encouraged people to move money out of savings accounts that pay next to nothing and into stocks and other investments.

Investors warned clients not to get overly excited.

"Getting back to where we were is an important step," said Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices. But he cautioned in a note to investors: "Markets are volatile, and if you are a long-term investor you should expect declines."

On Thursday, the S&P 500 rose 6.34 points, or 0.41 percent, to 1,569.19, beating by four points its previous record of 1,565.15 set on Oct. 9, 2007. The index is still shy of its all-time trading high of 1,576.09.

The index has now recovered all of its losses from the recession and the financial crisis that followed. Investors who put their dividends back into the market have done even better. A $10,000 investment in the S&P back in October 2007 would be worth $11,270.

On any other day, a market gain of six points would go unheralded but not after the turmoil that began in late 2008 and persisted through a slow, sometimes stalled recovery.

The S&P 500 is a barometer that gauges market performance. And while professional investors might scoff at using it to decide when to buy and sell, the breaking of an old record can be psychologically important.

However, many obstacles still loom.

The U.S. economy is stable, but growth is anemic. Unemployment is 7.7 percent, versus 4.7 percent, the last time the S&P notched a record. The European debt crisis is far from resolved. And some investors are concerned that the market's gains are being fueled by the Federal Reserve's easy money policy and will disappear once the Fed reverses course.

The crisis of the moment is Cyprus, the Mediterranean island country that struggled this week to get an emergency bailout. For many investors, the bailout deal was a reminder of Europe's lingering economic problems. Elsewhere, Italy failed to set up a new government this week, raising fears that the country will be unable to manage its deep debts.

On Thursday, U.S. economic news was mixed.

The U.S. economy grew faster than first estimated in the fourth quarter, the government reported. But the growth, an annual rate of 0.4 percent, was still weak. The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits jumped for the second straight week. Longer-term, though, applications for benefits have been declining since November.

In Europe, Cyprus reopened its banks after closing them for nearly two weeks to keep depositors from making panicked withdrawals. Portugal reported that its budget deficit was widening.

"If you're a bull or a bear, you could find enough news out there to convince you of your position," said Jim Lauder, CEO of Global Index Advisors in Marietta, Ga., and co-portfolio manager on Wells Fargo Advantage Dow Jones Target Date Funds.

Brian Singer, partner at William Blair in Chicago, said the market's gains Thursday were more about a lack of any major negative developments than the appearance of any good ones.

"We are looking at a realization that Western civilization is not ending as we know it," Singer said. "Fiscal discussions in the U.S. have settled into an acceptable stalemate. The Italian elections that did not result in a government are on hold. Cyprus hasn't sunk into the Mediterranean."

Thursday marked the end of the first quarter, since markets are closed for Good Friday. Overall, it was a strong quarter.

The Dow climbed for the first 10 trading days of March ? a record not matched in more than 16 years. In the past 10 days, though, it has wavered under the weight of Cyprus.

The Dow rose 11 percent in the first three months of the year, its best quarterly performance since the fourth quarter of 2011. Last year, it lost ground in two quarters and was up by smaller amounts ? 4 percent and 8 percent ? in the other two. On March 5, it beat its own all-time record of 14,164.53, which was also set on Oct. 9, 2007, and has been climbing ever since.

To be sure, the S&P 500's last record was followed by a painful downfall. By March 2009, long after the subprime mortgage market had been revealed as an unsustainable bubble, the S&P had cratered from its lofty heights. On March 9, 2009, it fell to its Great Recession low of 676.53 ? down 57 percent from its October 2007 pinnacle.

With Thursday's gains, it has climbed 132 percent since reaching the bottom. Including dividends, it is up more than 150 percent.

___

Associated Press Business Writer Matt Craft in New York contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/p-500-closes-record-high-beating-07-mark-201022179--finance.html

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House Speaker admonishes fellow Republican for immigrant slur (reuters)

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Breaking Into YA Fiction: A Conversation with Ruth Witteried

Does a new writer trying to break into YA need to have a finished novel or can they submit a proposal? If you?re new to YA and thinking about pitching a book proposal; think again. Typically, publishers of fiction want a finished product, and as a new writer your book is the best representation of your ability. Very few, if any, agents will shop a fiction proposal, YA or otherwise, from an unknown author. If you are established in a different genre, or have an amazing, interactive website for the YA audience you might stand a better chance, but any agent will want to make sure you can write fiction. Better just to write the book and get it to a reputable agent. What are the recommended specs for a YA novel?page length, word count, language censored in any way? There is still some separation in the expected word count of adult fiction versus young adult fiction. Adult fiction typically falls somewhere between 80,000-100,000 words (300-400 pages). ?Writer?s Digest suggests a 55,000 ? 70,000 word count for YA (220-280 pages); cautioning against going much higher, although they admit this is a very fluid category. If you are writing fantasy/sci-fi, you will probably go well into the 70,000 range, as world building uses a lot of ink. There are always exceptions of course, just check out these YA bestsellers: The Hunger Games (384), The Night Circus (528), Mrs. Peregrine?s Home for Peculiar Children (352), The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the Nation (351), and Delirium (441). Most of the restrictions we associate with YA?profanity, sexual situations, extreme violence?have fallen away. Profanity makes regular appearances in nearly all bestselling YA fiction; and appropriately so as it has become ubiquitous in our society. That?s not to say you should be careless with its use, but to ignore it completely may have your dialogue sounding inauthentic. Most YA books are still fairly restrained when dealing with sexual situations. That is to say, they focus more on the yearning and the lead up to sex than actual sex scenes. Make no mistake, many characters are sexually active and speak openly about it, a lot about it, but the actual ?going all the way? scene in a book like Shiver, for example, leads you to the door and shuts it (nobody really considers 50 Shades of Grey to be YA, in spite of the young protagonist!). And as far as extreme violence goes, you need only look at the success of The Hunger Games to realize how loose the restrictions on violence have become. It is listed on Amazon for readers ?12 and up.? ?When you look at the level of violence on television, in movies and video games, it really shouldn?t come as any surprise. Fortunately, Torture Porn (think The Saw movie franchise) is still relegated to adult fiction. Which agents are the most easily accessible to a new YA writer? Many agents, who five years ago wouldn?t consider YA, are now actively pursuing writers of the genre. When I managed a Waldenbooks in the eighties, books for teens fell under one banner: Young Adult, and it occupied two linear feet of shelf space. Judy Blume was its most provocative author, Forever causing uproars in school boards across the country for daring to deal with her protagonist?s loss of virginity. Today, YA easily occupy 15-20 linear feet, even in modest sized Barnes & Nobles, with subcategories for: Romance, Paranormal Romance, Fantasy & Adventure, Sci-Fi, Mystery, Historical, Dystopian, Steampunk, Humor, Anime and Graphic Novels. Agents are looking for the next hot voice in YA and are more receptive to a great pitch or query letter. Andrea Brown, Full Circle, Victoria Sanders & Associates, Andrea Hurst, Wendy Lamb, are agencies I see consistently at conferences, soliciting YA material. Laurie McLean of Foreword Literacy (The Iron Fey series) regularly attends the Willamette Writers Conference and signed Portland author, Marni Bates as a result of a pitch. Marni now has four YA titles in print and a film option. Do you have to have an agent to get read? It certainly helps, but like the music industry before it, everything is changing in publishing (and in film). Agents used to be the gateway to writing success. That is less and less true. Many publishing houses have laid off their in-house editing staff, formerly assigned to new writers to get their books in shape. Now, many of those editors are working freelance and often act as a conduit to agents and publishers. Another way to get read is to pitch to a film manager, producer or agent. We?re seeing a lot of cross over at our conference; film people looking for completed, published and unpublished manuscripts, blogs, life rights, even Twitter feeds. Sh*t My Dad Says, was a book before it was a sitcom, and a Twitter feed before it was a book. So there are ways to get your book read outside of the traditional query. Are there any conferences a new writer can attend that are actually helpful? Indeed (cue blatant plug). I have been attending the Willamette Writers Conference every year since 2008 (I became the Film Coordinator in 2011). This is a very reputable conference that offers a high caliber curriculum over a three day weekend, but also offers an opportunity to meet and/or pitch to an agent, editor or publisher. We?re in Portland, but there are undoubtedly conferences close to you worth attending. But they can be expensive, so it?s important to set clear goals about what you want to accomplish. If you only want to pitch your book, then you need to study the roster of consultants available to pitch to. Every conference has a website with biographies from each consultant, including a wish list of what kinds of books they?re looking for.? Study it, and follow up with a search at publishersmarketplace.com or agentquery.com to see who?s on their client list. Most of them have a website with a blog, or a Twitter feed with links to articles they think are important. Follow them for a few weeks to see if they?re a good fit for you. At the very least you will be more informed when you query them or meet them in person to pitch. Writers are signed every year at conferences around the country. I personally see it happen every year in Portland. Can you submit directly to a publisher and which publishers are the most open to new writers? No. You can query a publisher, but as a general rule unsolicited manuscripts are thrown away. Check their website for submission requirements and follow them. What is the biggest mistake a new writer makes when trying to break into the YA market? The two mistakes I see the most often are lecturing and shielding the reader. Teenagers are highly attuned to changes in air pressure when a lecture approaches and will run for cover. Your message may be important, urgent even, but it requires a light touch if it is to reach this audience. Likewise, if you sugar coat your subject matter in an attempt to protect the reader, you?ll come off as phony. I have been guilty of this myself, going all the way to the edge and pulling back because I was afraid of offending someone (more often a parent or school board). Teen audiences are far more savvy than we give them credit for. Forget about playing it safe. How can a writer improve their chance for success? Read young adult. Read lots of young adult. Not only will you take comfort in the amount of flat out crap being sold (we all need hope!); it gives you a point from which to compare your own story and writing. Then when you find quality writing, (I?m a fan of Lauren Oliver?s) you have a second point of comparison and can begin to close the gap. Know your market. For example, the paranormal romance genre is glutted. Don?t write that unless you?ve found something no one else has. (How do I know that? I read it in an agent?s wish list on a conference website). Is platform as essential in YA as it is in adult trade? Yes and no. You don?t have to build up your CV with publications, lectures or speaking engagements to be a credible YA writer. But you have to be findable, so at the very least you need an internet presence. My website, zombienoel.com, was launched in advance of the completion of the book; a new trend in marketing that agents and publishers are looking for. And once your website is up, you can elect to bypass traditional publishing and e-publish a chapter at a time if you like, on your own site. What is the smartest move you?ve ever seen a writer make when it comes to their career? Kelly Williams Brown, not long out of college, realized there was a whole lot of stuff involved in living on your own that she didn?t know how to do or was too undisciplined to do.? This became the concept for a book proposal: Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps, with topics like, ?Make Your Fucking Bed!? She started a blog two weeks before the Willamette Writers Conference with the intention of adding something new every day for a year, then pitched the non-fiction concept in a group pitch session. I think it was a Saturday (she only came one day expressly to pitch). By Monday night she had a book agent, who went on to sell the book at auction and FOX is producing a pilot. All based on the strength on her concept, presentation, and a self-made website. What is the best advice you?ve ever been given? Randall Jahnson, (Mask of Zorro, The Doors) a screenwriter transplant from L.A., told me I had an annoying habit of ?pulling my punches? (see above!). After reading two of my early scripts, he got frustrated and said, ?This is good stuff, you set the scene and build the tension and then?you wuss out! Fucking say it, don?t sugar coat it!? What do you wish you knew then that you know now? I wish I had been more confident, more trusting of my story instincts. It?s a difficult thing to gage until you put yourself out there, be it a contest, a critique group, or submission; but it?s important to have that trust in yourself. Nobody else can write from your gut, so it?s pointless to second guess yourself, especially on a first draft when everything is fresh. Errors in execution can be fixed in the rewrite. Any last words of encouragement or warnings? Do something every day to further your writing goals or move your story forward. Set up a space and a routine and guard it with your life. We are told to write every day for good reason?it keeps us connected to our story and keeps our skills sharp. So give it a try. Something is better than nothing. And when you miss a day, or two or three; cultivate self-forgiveness. Then get back in your chair and write. Ruth Witteried has a M.A. from Pacific Lutheran University and teaches screenwriting at Clark College in Vancouver, WA. She took home the Columbine Award at the 2009 Moondance?International Film Festival for her feature length script,?A More Perfect?Union, detailing the 1919 Centralia Massacre. She is?currently writing the young adult book and screenplay, Zombie Noel under her pen name, RH Cohen. You can follow her on Facebook at SitYourAssDown; Twitter @sityourassdown1, or zombienoel.com.

Source: http://theconstantcreator.blogspot.com/2013/03/breaking-into-ya-fiction-conversation.html

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Owen Wilson-led animated film gets new title

By Lucas Shaw

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Relativity and Reel FX have renamed their upcoming animated film "Free Birds," replacing the previous title of "Turkeys."

"Turkeys" was a working title, and the parties felt that this new name aptly fit a raucous buddy comedy. It has not yet been decided if the Lynyrd Skynyrd song will be used (but we asked).

The film features the voices of Owen Wilson and Woody Harrelson as two spunky turkeys that take a time machine back to the first Thanksgiving. They want to expunge turkeys from Thanksgiving's culinary tradition.

Amy Poehler will voice the female lead while Dan Fogler, Lesley Nicol of "Downton Abbey," George Takei of "Star Trek" fame, Keith David and Colm Meaney all lend their voices as well.

Relativity decided in February to move the release of the film up a year from November 14, 2014 to November 1 of this year because of an opening in the calendar and its confidence in its early sneaks of the film.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/owen-wilson-led-animated-film-gets-title-223332604.html

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NATO head urges Syria political solution, rules out intervention

By Gabriela Baczynska

MOSCOW (Reuters) - NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen called for a political solution to the Syrian crisis on Wednesday, ruling out Western military intervention despite a plea for U.S. protection by a foe of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Opposition leader Moaz Alkhatib said on Tuesday he had asked U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for American forces to help defend rebel-controlled northern parts of Syria with Patriot surface-to-air missiles now based in Turkey.

But NATO Secretary-General Rasmussen stuck firmly to his insistence that the 28-nation alliance would not play a military role in the two-year-old Syrian conflict, which has claimed an estimated 70,000 lives.

"We don't have any intention to intervene militarily in Syria," he said, speaking to Russian students in Moscow via a video link from Brussels.

"I do believe that we need a political solution in Syria and I hope the international community will send a unified and clear message to all parties in Syria that we need a political solution," Rasmussen said.

Divisions between the Western powers and Russia and China have prevented decisive action on Syria at the United Nations.

Three NATO countries - the United States, the Netherlands and Germany - sent Patriot missiles to Turkey early this year to protect Turkish cities from possible attack from Syria.

Alkhatib told Reuters on Wednesday that the refusal by international powers to provide Patriot missile support sent a message to Assad to "do what you want".

Rasmussen said there was a clear difference between Syria and Libya, where NATO air strikes helped topple Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

"In Libya we took responsibility for the operation based on a United Nations mandate to protect the Libyan population against attacks from its own government...and we had active support from the countries in the region," he said.

"None of these conditions are fulfilled in Syria, there is no United Nations mandate, there is no call on NATO to intervene in Syria, even the opposition in Syria does not ask for a foreign military intervention," he said.

The six Patriot missile batteries dispatched by the NATO allies are stationed around three Turkish cities.

They have a short range - they can defend an area of just 15 to 20 km (10 to 13 miles) against a ballistic missile, according to NATO - and in their current positions are too far away to provide an effective shield for northern Syria.

The U.S. missiles, deployed around the city of Gaziantep, are closest to the Syrian border, about 60 km (37 miles) away, but the German and Dutch batteries are 100 km (60 miles) or more from the Syrian border.

(Writing by Adrian Croft; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/nato-head-urges-syria-political-solution-rules-intervention-133900816.html

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Ex-Sen. Craig loses bid to dismiss FEC lawsuit

WASHINGTON (AP) ? A federal judge is refusing to dismiss a Federal Election Commission lawsuit accusing former Sen. Larry Craig of misusing $217,000 in campaign funds for his legal defense after his arrest in a 2007 airport bathroom sex sting.

Craig contends that the airport bathroom trip fell under his official duties as senator because he was traveling between Idaho and Washington for work.

But U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson said in a ruling Thursday that neither the charge nor the underlying conduct had anything to do with Craig's official duties.

The Idaho Republican was arrested by an undercover police officer conducting a sting operation at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. After his arrest and guilty plea to disorderly conduct later became public, Craig tried unsuccessfully to reverse his conviction.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ex-sen-craig-loses-bid-dismiss-fec-lawsuit-211033753--politics.html

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Book Marketing: 9 Activities to Boost Your Author Career | The ...

There are millions of books out there, increasing in volume faster as the technology makes it easier to publish, so how do you stand out from the crowd?

I don?t believe there is only one answer, but I do think you need to do something to get noticed, stand out from the crowd and get your book sales started. Here?s some different ideas from Dana Sitar, author of ?A Writer?s Bucket List?.

You know you?re supposed to write a blog and be active on social media. You?re following all the tips you?ve ever heard for marketing your books through these channels ? even trying the ones that contradict each other ? but you always wonder if you could do more. If you feel stuck in a rut and searching for new ways to build your platform and promote your books, here are nine ideas to add to your arsenal:

1. Enter a contest.

Placing in and winning contests add to your credits and, depending on the contest, can afford you great cash prizes and opportunities in your field, like attending a writers conference or having your work published in a major publication. Prestigious leaders in the industry often judge the right contests, so even if you don?t place, you have a chance to put your work in front of people you couldn?t otherwise touch.

Writing for contests can also be a great motivator for fiction writers. Where non-fiction writers often have assignments and deadlines to guide their writing habit, fiction writers often have to be more self-motivated. Contest themes can afford you inspiration when you?re feeling blocked, and the deadlines force you to adhere to a writing schedule.

2. Submit stories to literary journals.

Rather than pining away your whole life and betting your entire career on a novel, break into publishing with baby steps. Without worrying whether you?ll be accepted, start submitting short stories or poetry to literary journals. Working with editorial guidelines and learning to accept inevitable rejection will help steel you for other endeavors in publishing. Even if you never have a story published, the experience of submitting and the feedback you?ll occasionally receive from thoughtful editors will be invaluable for strengthening your creative and professional skills.

Some magazines will even pay for your stories, so this is a great way to build an additional income stream so you don?t have to rely on book sales.

3. Create digital products.

Use your writing skills to develop more than stories. Create a helpful ebook, manifesto, an e-guide, or an online course. These may come very late in your career as a way to impart your wisdom, or early on as a way to share your work and connect with new readers.

Get creative! Being an author doesn?t mean you have to create products to teach other authors. Create products that will help you reach your readers. Write a free manifesto from the point-of-view of your main character. Create an e-guide to the capital city in your fantasy world. Develop an online course to share tips and recipes in the style of cooking your characters are famous for. Diversifying the products you create will help you not only reach a broader audience but also broaden your own knowledge and your voice.

4. Produce a book trailer.

For at least one book you publish, write and produce a trailer video. I mean do it yourself ? or, at least, work very closely with the professional you hire to do it for you. Even if you don?t want to be responsible for this step for all of your books, going through the process at least once will help you develop new skills, and understanding it will prepare you to work with publishers on marketing future books.

Videos are a fantastic marketing tool, even when they?re marketing books. Developing a multi-media presence online will not only help you reach a wider audience but will also greatly enhance your appeal to the audience you already have.

5. Write a column for a newspaper or newsletter.

I know: You?re a fiction writer, not a journalist. But, why would people buy your book if they don?t know who you are? Maybe they?ll recognize your name from your book review column in the library?s newsletter, or your pontificating in the local weekly.

Even if the focus of your writing career is not on freelance news writing, you can make steady income and gain at least local recognition from a regular column (national or international if you work with an e-newsletter). Your column gives readers a chance to sample your writing and get to know you without investing additional time to read your blog or money to buy your books.

6. Meet other writers in person.

Some of the best education you?ll find in any art form comes from the people who are doing what you do ? or better, what you dream to do. Getting to know others who share and understand your interests and goals also comes with a unique comfort and camaraderie that even the most supportive group of non-writer friends or family can?t quite offer.

If you?re exclusively active in online forums, social media, or blogging, make an effort to connect in real life with some of the people you know online. You don?t have to shell out the time and money to attend a writers conference or retreat (though, those are also good options). Just pay attention to where your online friends are living or traveling, and send an occasional ?Let?s grab coffee? email when they?re in your area.

7. Find and keep a good critique partner.

You know the value of getting a second opinion on anything you write. That value increases greatly when the opinion comes from someone who understands your voice, style, and intentions well. Finding a skilled writer with whom to swap critiques throughout your career will do wonders for your writing and your brand. Start with finding a critique group in your area through (Meetup is a great place to start), or an online group like LadiesWhoCritique, and work with a few people to find your ideal partnership.

8. Generate an email list.

?Permission marketing? is the buzzword phrase of the day, and building an email list is its most basic manifestation. When a reader gives you an email address, they expect and welcome correspondence from you. It gives you an opportunity to make promises, which creates expectations, and keep them, which fosters goodwill, satisfaction, and loyalty.

Writing an email newsletter is one of the best ways to build an email list, because it allows you to offer something of value ? news, information, or just another way of connecting ? to your readers in exchange for permission to contact them. If your fan base is loyal enough, you may be able to get readers to sign up just to hear your news. If you?re still working to grow your audience, try offering an incentive to sign up ? many authors and bloggers offer a free item when readers join their list (your new digital product could come in handy here!)

9. Speak at live events.

Successfully capturing the attention of an audience ? or, even better, eliciting an emotional response like laughter or tears ? is one of the greatest highs you will experience in life. That massive payoff is probably why it?s so nerve-wracking for most people. Get through it a few times, and your self-confidence will soar through the roof.

Writers can too easily neglect live events, because we?re often quiet, behind-the-scenes people. We want our work to speak for itself. But stepping out in front of audience helps you connect with readers and potential readers in a more real, more memorable way. Live events also offer more pragmatic benefits: Readers will be more likely to purchase your paperback in person than online, where they can compare it to the cheaper ebook option, and meet-and-greets allow you to hand-sign copies of your book, turning them into personal mementos for your readers.

Do you have any advice or experience with these different ways of getting attention for your writing? Or any other suggestions? I?d love to hear from you in the comments below.

Want more ideas to boost your writing career and ignite your creativity? My latest book, AWriter?sBucketList is a launching point for all the possibilities of being a writer. Grab the PDF today, or signup to be notified shortly when the book is available for Kindle and paperback.

About the Author

Dana Sitar is a freelance blogger and author of ?AWriter?sBucketList?, 99 things to do for inspiration, education, and experience before your writing kicks the bucket. She shares resources, tips, and tools for writers in search of a path through the blog, books, and community at DIYWriting.

Top image: Flickr Creative Commons Alex Kess Raincoats

Tagged as: competitions, promotion, speaking

Source: http://www.thecreativepenn.com/2013/03/28/boost-your-author-career/

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Actress Ashley Judd won't run for US Senate

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) ? Actress Ashley Judd announced Wednesday she won't run for U.S. Senate in Kentucky against Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, saying she had given serious thought to a campaign but decided her responsibilities and energy need to be focused on her family.

The former Kentucky resident tweeted her decision.

"Regretfully, I am currently unable to consider a campaign for the Senate. I have spoken to so many Kentuckians over these last few months who expressed their desire for a fighter for the people & new leader," Judd wrote.

"While that won't be me at this time, I will continue to work as hard as I can to ensure the needs of Kentucky families are met by returning this Senate seat to whom it rightfully belongs: the people & their needs, dreams, and great potential. Thanks for even considering me as that person & know how much I love our Commonwealth. Thank you!"

Her publicist Cara Tripicchio confirmed Judd's decision.

The 44-year-old Judd had hinted last week that she was nearing a decision about the race.

Now living in suburban Nashville, Tenn., Judd has said little publicly about her intentions. However, she has been meeting with several Democratic leaders, including Gov. Steve Beshear, to discuss a possible run.

Defeating McConnell would be the Democrats' biggest prize of the 2014 election. His seat is one of 14 that Republicans are defending while Democrats try to hold onto 21, hoping to retain or add to their 55-45 edge.

The star of such films as "Double Jeopardy" and "Kiss the Girls" is known for her liberal political views and she would have been running in a largely conservative state where Republicans hold both Senate seats and five of the six seats in the U.S. House.

Former State Treasurer Jonathan Miller, a Judd supporter, said she would have been a strong candidate.

"As a Kentuckian and someone who was really enthusiastic about her as a candidate, this wasn't the news I was hoping for," Miller said. "But as her friend, from the first time we talked about the race last summer, I was very candid about the grueling nature of politics. It's become a very unpleasant business and running against Mitch McConnell would be an extraordinarily difficult and grueling experience."

McConnell, who spent some $20 million on his last election and who has already raised $10 million for the next one, had already been taunting would-be Democratic challengers in a comical online video intended to raise second thoughts about taking on a politician known as brawler. The video plays on the fact that Judd lives in Tennessee.

Republican-leaning group American Crossroads in its own online video also plays on the Tennessee angle and ties her closely to President Barack Obama, who is unpopular in Kentucky.

University of Louisville political scientist Laurie Rhodebeck said Judd certainly wasn't frightened out of the race.

"She doesn't strike me as a shrinking violet," Rhodebeck said. "I think the real issue would be how much disruption she wanted in her life. This was the kind of thing that she would have to throw herself into 100 percent in order to make it worthwhile."

Judd and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti separated early this year after marrying in his native Scotland in 2001.

Judd's decision not to enter the race leaves the Democratic Party in search of a candidate. Many of Kentucky's top Democrats, including Beshear, have said they won't run. However, a rising star within the party, Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, hasn't ruled the race out. Grimes declined comment Wednesday evening through her spokeswoman, Lynn Sowards Zellen.

___

Associated Press writer Janet Cappiello contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/actress-ashley-judd-wont-run-us-senate-213309573--politics.html

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Kessler Foundation scientists receive Consortium of MS Centers grant to study emotional processing

Public release date: 28-Mar-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Carolann Murphy
CMurphy@KesslerFoundation.org
973-324-8382
Kessler Foundation

Helen Genova, Ph.D., and Jean Lengenfelder, Ph.D., were awarded a $40,000 grant for a 1-year study funded by the Consortium of MS Centers titled 'Remediation of emotional processing deficits in MS: A pilot study'

West Orange, NJ. March 27, 2013. Helen Genova, PhD, and Jean Lengenfelder, PhD, were awarded a $40,000 grant to study disorders of emotional processing in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). The one-year study, funded by The Consortium of MS Centers, is titled "Remediation of emotional processing deficits in MS: A pilot study." Dr. Genova is a research scientist in Neuropsychology & Neuroscience Research and Dr. Lengenfelder is assistant director of Traumatic Brain Injury Research at Kessler Foundation.

"This is one of the first studies to address emotional processing deficits in MS," noted Nancy Chiaravalloti, PhD, director of Neuropsychology, Neuroscience & TBI Research at Kessler Foundation. "The program being tested is an emotional processing training program that has been successful in both autism and schizophrenia. Our scientists will examine its effects on emotional processing abilities, as well as on mood, cognitive processing, and quality of life."

Recent evidence suggests that a significant number of individuals with MS have difficulty in emotional processing. "Specifically, individuals with MS may have difficulty correctly identifying emotions from facial expressions," explained Dr. Genova. "Because deficits in emotional processing can have a significant negative impact on social interactions and quality of life, finding ways to treat these deficits is critical to improving the lives of individuals with MS."

Drs. Genova and Lengenfelder work closely with Dr. Chiaravalloti and John DeLuca, PhD, VP for Research and Training at Kessler Foundation, both of whom are experts in cognitive rehabilitation research in MS and traumatic brain injury. Drs. Genova, Lengenfelder, DeLuca and Chiaravalloti have faculty appointments in the department of physical medicine & rehabilitation at UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School.

###

Recent article:

Genova HM, Lengenfelder J, Chiaravalloti ND, Moore NB, DeLuca J. Processing speed versus working memory: contributions to an information-processing task in multiple sclerosis. Appl Neuropsychol Adult. 2012;19(2):132-40. doi: 10.1080/09084282.2011.643951.

About MS Research at Kessler Foundation

Kessler Foundation's cognitive rehabilitation research in MS is funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health, National MS Society, NJ Commission of Brain Injury Research, and Kessler Foundation. Scientists in Neuropsychology & Neuroscience Research at Kessler Foundation have made important contributions to the knowledge of cognitive decline in MS. Clinical studies span new learning, memory, executive function, attention and processing speed. Research tools include innovative applications of neuroimaging, iPADs, and virtual reality. Among recent findings are the benefits of cognitive reserve; correlation between cognitive performance and outdoor temperatures; the efficacy of short-term cognitive rehabilitation using modified story technique; and the correlation between memory improvement and cerebral activation on fMRI.

About Kessler Foundation

Kessler Foundation, a major nonprofit organization in the field of disability, is a global leader in rehabilitation research that seeks to improve cognition, mobility and long-term outcomes, including employment, for people with neurological disabilities caused by diseases and injuries of the brain and spinal cord. Kessler Foundation leads the nation in funding innovative programs that expand opportunities for employment for people with disabilities. For more information, visit KesslerFoundation.org.

Contacts:

Carolann Murphy, 973.324.8382, CMurphy@KesslerFoundation.org

Lauren Scrivo, 973.324.8384, 973.768.6583 - c, LScrivo@KesslerFoundation.org

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 28-Mar-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Carolann Murphy
CMurphy@KesslerFoundation.org
973-324-8382
Kessler Foundation

Helen Genova, Ph.D., and Jean Lengenfelder, Ph.D., were awarded a $40,000 grant for a 1-year study funded by the Consortium of MS Centers titled 'Remediation of emotional processing deficits in MS: A pilot study'

West Orange, NJ. March 27, 2013. Helen Genova, PhD, and Jean Lengenfelder, PhD, were awarded a $40,000 grant to study disorders of emotional processing in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). The one-year study, funded by The Consortium of MS Centers, is titled "Remediation of emotional processing deficits in MS: A pilot study." Dr. Genova is a research scientist in Neuropsychology & Neuroscience Research and Dr. Lengenfelder is assistant director of Traumatic Brain Injury Research at Kessler Foundation.

"This is one of the first studies to address emotional processing deficits in MS," noted Nancy Chiaravalloti, PhD, director of Neuropsychology, Neuroscience & TBI Research at Kessler Foundation. "The program being tested is an emotional processing training program that has been successful in both autism and schizophrenia. Our scientists will examine its effects on emotional processing abilities, as well as on mood, cognitive processing, and quality of life."

Recent evidence suggests that a significant number of individuals with MS have difficulty in emotional processing. "Specifically, individuals with MS may have difficulty correctly identifying emotions from facial expressions," explained Dr. Genova. "Because deficits in emotional processing can have a significant negative impact on social interactions and quality of life, finding ways to treat these deficits is critical to improving the lives of individuals with MS."

Drs. Genova and Lengenfelder work closely with Dr. Chiaravalloti and John DeLuca, PhD, VP for Research and Training at Kessler Foundation, both of whom are experts in cognitive rehabilitation research in MS and traumatic brain injury. Drs. Genova, Lengenfelder, DeLuca and Chiaravalloti have faculty appointments in the department of physical medicine & rehabilitation at UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School.

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Recent article:

Genova HM, Lengenfelder J, Chiaravalloti ND, Moore NB, DeLuca J. Processing speed versus working memory: contributions to an information-processing task in multiple sclerosis. Appl Neuropsychol Adult. 2012;19(2):132-40. doi: 10.1080/09084282.2011.643951.

About MS Research at Kessler Foundation

Kessler Foundation's cognitive rehabilitation research in MS is funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health, National MS Society, NJ Commission of Brain Injury Research, and Kessler Foundation. Scientists in Neuropsychology & Neuroscience Research at Kessler Foundation have made important contributions to the knowledge of cognitive decline in MS. Clinical studies span new learning, memory, executive function, attention and processing speed. Research tools include innovative applications of neuroimaging, iPADs, and virtual reality. Among recent findings are the benefits of cognitive reserve; correlation between cognitive performance and outdoor temperatures; the efficacy of short-term cognitive rehabilitation using modified story technique; and the correlation between memory improvement and cerebral activation on fMRI.

About Kessler Foundation

Kessler Foundation, a major nonprofit organization in the field of disability, is a global leader in rehabilitation research that seeks to improve cognition, mobility and long-term outcomes, including employment, for people with neurological disabilities caused by diseases and injuries of the brain and spinal cord. Kessler Foundation leads the nation in funding innovative programs that expand opportunities for employment for people with disabilities. For more information, visit KesslerFoundation.org.

Contacts:

Carolann Murphy, 973.324.8382, CMurphy@KesslerFoundation.org

Lauren Scrivo, 973.324.8384, 973.768.6583 - c, LScrivo@KesslerFoundation.org

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Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-03/kf-kfs032813.php

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